Love's Sleep

Regret

Travis shouldn't have ran after Madison. If he hadn't, he would be emotionally a-okay in his hospital bed, recovering from his breakdown. But he was here now, the girl he loved sleeping on his shoulder, causing his emotions to go all over the place. He didn't know how to react.

She looked up at him, her eyes gleaming with happiness. He was smiling down at her, stroking her hair as they both stared at each other, her head in his lap. And they stayed like that, for hours on end, being together.

But now that she was on his lap he didn't know what emotion to feel. One part of him wanted to just abruptly stand up and leave her there, while another part told him to gather her up in his arms, to feel her warmth against his again. And the latter one took over. He outstretched his free hand, the one not around her shoulders, and took her hand in his. Then he squeezed her body against his, so that her legs were on his lap now. He pulled her head into his chest, and dug his head into her hair.

"I love you," he whispered, hoping that she couldn't hear. "I miss you. I miss this. I miss us." And soon, his emotions became too much, and he fell asleep, peacefully, with the girl he loved.

-

When Madison woke up, she didn't expect to wake up with, er, on Travis. But her heart fluttered when it finally got through her head, that Travis had followed her and comforted her.

But it scared her at the same time. Didn't Travis hate her? After what she had done to him years ago?

She poked his side and he abruptly became alert, wrapping his arms around Madison. Whether it was on instinct or just reflexes, Madison didn't know, but she smiled when he did. After a second, Travis realized what he was doing and pulled his arms back, hoping that his blush wasn't showing. He stood up and offered a hand to Madison, who took it, and pulled herself up. As she did, her vision became dizzy and a pain shot through her head as she fell onto Travis. His frame held her up as he wrapped his arms around her body, keeping her from reaching the floor. She smiled up at him and smiled back. It was a weird silience they were in, but it wasn't uncomfortable, it felt right. Travis stared at her.

"Hey," he said gently, as they walked back to his room. Madison noticed how deep his voice had gotten, and it sent shivers down her spine.

"Hey," she squeaked. She mentally cursed herself for not being confident enough but Travis laughed at her shyness, and to be very cliché, it was music to her ears. His laughter died down and his facade turned serious, looking at the moving ground below him.

"Madison, why did I find you in the empty corridor crying?" he asked softly, his voice quiet. She took note of how he said 'the' and grasped his hand suddenly. His hand jumped a little as she did, but it soon wrapped around her smaller hand, perfectly.

"I-I don't know," she lied. Of course she knew why she was crying, because of the guilt that came with knowing that your best friend had been having panic attacks because of you. Travis stopped walking, stopping Madison with him, and turned toward her. He stared at her face, cupping it with his hand. She tried looking away, but it didn't work, as his eyes hypnotized her.

Travis saw the sadness and guilt in his friend's eyes. Over the years, he had learned how to read people, and he knew exactly why she was upset.

"It wasn't your fault," he said softly. Her nodded and went back to walking, dragging him with her, their hands still interlocked.

"I'm sorry, for everything," he heard her mutter under her breath. He pulled his hand away from hers, reaching across the back of her shoulders. When she flinched at his touch, he took her hand in his again and squeezed it gently. He looked down at her and could have sworn that she was smiling.